Home to late night jazz, greasy food, and unpretentious dancing, Marathon never fails to disappoint at the end of the night.

The Venue
Situated on Chalk Farm road, approximately five minutes from both Camden Town and Chalk Farm Northern Line stations, from the front Marathon looks like just a regular busy kebab shop.

Push past the food counter, buy a can of Strongbow at the back hatch and you’ll be in for a surprise. The place has a secret back room with live music and an outside seating and smoking area. It’s also one of the only places along the road that’s free to get into and open until 4am.

The Atmosphere
Most of the cool Camden types flowing out from the neighbouring early-closing bars stumble upon this venue whilst they’re just about to grab a kebab and jump on the night bus home, so naturally the atmosphere is generally very lively. Expect to see people either dancing on the tables enthusiastically to the jazz or mash-up of tunes being played in the back or deeply engrossed in their yellow polystyrene boxes full of kebabs and chips in the front. It sounds a bizarre idea, but strangely it really works.

The Food
What’s great about this place is that it combines the need for something greasy at the end of the night with the reluctance to hit the sack. A range of kebabs, burgers and chips can be purchased in the front area, where they have to be consumed. You can get most food items for under £4.

The Drink
Marathon doesn’t waste any time offering anything fancy – let’s face it, by the end of the night most people have spent all their money and are now as happy with a can of Strongbow as they were with the luxury cocktail they picked up earlier in the night.

You’ll find a bouncer standing at the entrance to the back section of the kebab shop, who ensures you at least purchase a bottle of water before you enter. The drinks on offer at the hatch are pretty much restricted to water and Strongbow.

The Last Word
Random, unpretentious and messy, this venue is a fantastic place to finish up at after a night out in Camden.

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